COURSEOUTLINE:February 4: Introduction: Elections and American Democracy First (introductory) lecture, 2/4.In this course, we will be concerned with questions such as these:1.Why is it that the Supreme Court, which is the most insulated branch of government, changes itsdecisions as public opinion changes?2.Why do Americans love their Congressmen and hate Congress?3.Why, in 199?, did the public opinion want healthcare reform and yet it wasn’t passed, and in 200?it didn’t want the tax cut, and yet it was passed? International comparison: In the US, the legislative branch is unusually strong, the bureaucracy ispermeable (there is not permanent governing class, where you need to be born into a certain social class orgo to a certain university to become part of the bureaucracy), political parties are comparatively weak.American peculiarity and emphasis of this course – very frequent elections. Whence this Americanpassion for elections? – Founders’ principal worry was tyranny. John Adams: “Where annual elections end,tyranny begins.”The number of elections has increased post-WW II:Up to the 1950s, elections to all levels of government would take place on a single date. Now thisis no longer the case less time for policymaking, voter fatigueWeakening of the parties. Voters used to vote along party lines; party organizations wouldmobilize voters, endorse candidates. Now candidates are pretty much on their own - own staffs,own election campaigns, own money.In the early 70s primaries became the chief way of selecting candidatesNo other democracy in the world does this – in those countries (as in the US of old) it is partyelites who decide which candidate to put forward.Because of primaries, each candidate now has two constituencies: his primary constituency, andhis general election constituency (and at this point he or she needs to move away from the moreextreme and partisan positions taken during the primary season)Media revolution.Rise of polling, which is now ubiquitous.Does it mean politicians are now more responsive to the people, or just better able to sell theirproposals?There are a lot of critiques of the election-centered system: hard decisions are avoided, the system isineffective, it encourages electoral posturing, there’s much room for exchanging money for privileges.But the system also has its benefits: US elected officials are some of the most responsive in the world.

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Fiorina and Peterson, Ch. 1Fiorina and Peterson Ch. 1: Democracy in the United StatesUS democracy is driven more by electoral forces than other democraciesthe continual influences from such forces leads us to refer to the “permanent campaign”, i.e. all elected officials are always, at the same time, candidates running for reelectionwe have tons of elections: primary(parties chose nominee) and general(person gets elected into office) as well as initiatives(laws on the ballot due to citizens petitions), referendums(laws only enacted in approved by citizens), and

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